Interview: 'We can get Iraqi people to rise up' against regime

British and American forces are making a ''major mistake'' by failing to encourage popular uprisings against Saddam Hussain, according to the leader of the opposition Iraqi National Congress.

Speaking from Dokan, northern Iraq, Wednesday, Ahmad Chalabi praised the allied advance, but added: ''The coalition has not been able to win the confidence of the Iraqi people, who feel completely disempowered. ''The only ones who can mobilise the Iraqi people are the opposition, and so far there is little role for us in this war.

''We are the only people who can get the population to rise up against Saddam, but the coalition broadcasts are telling the Iraqi people to stay at home. This is not the correct way to go. If this is to be a liberation, then the people must participate.''

Chalabi emphatically rejected the view, expressed by Jack Straw, Britain's Foreign Secretary, on the BBC Wednesday, that Iraqi hostility towards coalition troops is inspired by a perception of ''double standards'' towards Iraq and the Palestinians.

He said: ''This is science fiction. The Iraqis are stuck between the allied bombs and Saddam's repressive apparatus. The issue of Palestine is not the reason why they have not demonstrated. It is fear of Saddam and the fact that the coalition has told them to do nothing.''

Chalabi insisted that the opposition could provide vital intelligence for the allied forces, based on ''frequent and detailed contacts'' with networks of sources inside all the areas under Saddam's control.

For example, the Iraqi National Congress had contacts in Basra who had witnessed Tuesday's uprising. ''It was quickly suppressed and some people were hanged by Saddam's security forces,'' he explained. ''It would have been very good if they had been encouraged to rise, if they had been provided with more assistance in fighting Saddam's forces who were attacking them.

''I am sure there was little communication between the rebels and the coalition forces. This must be redressed immediately by providing secure communications.''

Chalabi believes that the coalition is failing to encourage an insurrection for three reasons: ''Bad intelligence; fear of the political forces of the Iraqi people; and the coalition's desire to shape the future of Iraq entirely on their own, without opposition participation.''

Claiming that his organisation has ''tens of thousands of fighters throughout the country'', Chalabi says the opposition is now unified and ready to take part in the war of liberation.

''We can start a second front in northern Iraq very quickly, provided that the coalition takes practical steps towards military co-ordination. It is long overdue.''

He attaches great importance to knocking out Saddam's propaganda machine, especially state television. ''It is clear now that the coalition troops cannot handle the Iraqi population on their own,'' Chalabi says, ''and the risks will be multiplied if they think they can do so post-Saddam. The leadership of the opposition are in a position to declare a provisional government, which could play a very important role in dealing with the security situation.

''The United States has moved closer to our position: they are no longer talking about a military governor, but about an interim Iraqi authority with specific functions.''

The Iraqi opposition is strongly opposed to Prime Minister Tony Blair's proposal that the United Nations should play a major role in post-war Iraq.

''The UN is too weak to deal with de-Ba'athification, the destruction of weapons of mass destruction and the dismantling of Saddam's security services. The UN would be hamstrung. Iraq is far too big and important. The UN's record on Iraq has been abysmal and the Iraqi people has little confidence in the UN.'' Instead, Chalabi wants allied troops to remain until a referendum, followed by elections, to establish democracy and independence.

Though Chalabi and the Iraqi National Congress are based in London, Britain has hitherto maintained only low-level contacts.

''The British do not recognise any legitimate role for the opposition in Iraq in the post-Saddam era, in contrast to the United States, which has appointed a special envoy and provided assistance and training for the opposition.

''The opposition that matters is the one inside Iraq. The bureaucratic war games that were played in the past by different parts of the Bush Administration about whom to support in the exile opposition must fall by the wayside when confronted with the harsh reality of war. We expect that our opinions will be taken into account.''

© The Telegraph Group Limited, London 2003